RA Defense Minister Suren Papikyan’s non-participation in the meeting of CSTO Defense Ministers has nothing to do with Armenia-CSTO relations. Artur Hovhannisyan, the Secretary of the ruling “Civil Contract” faction, announced in the National Assembly. Journalists were interested in whether this is how Armenia started the process of withdrawing from the CSTO. The MP reminded that Armenia still needs to plan to retire from the CSTO.
“I do not know the details; I am sure there is no political comment on this issue. I think they are related to other affairs of the Minister of Defense, other technical issues,” said the secretary of the ruling faction. The meeting of defense ministers of the CSTO member states was held yesterday in Minsk. Instead of Armenian Defense Minister Suren Papikyan, Artak Tonoyan, the Armenian Defense Ministry’s representative at the organization’s joint headquarters, went to the capital of Belarus. CSTO General Secretary Imangali Tasmagambetov and CSTO Joint Staff Chief Anatoly Sidorov participated in the meeting.
Nelly GRIGORYAN
